Word.ws English Dictionary

asshat

US/ˈæshæt/

asshat noun: an obnoxiously ignorant person; a fool.

Noun

asshat (plural asshats)

  1. (Canada, US, derogatory, humorous, often, slang) An obnoxiously ignorant person; a fool.
    • the same connotations as "FUCKWITS." for less extreme cases i suggest ASSHATS1998 July 23, T..., “Re: GREEN RIVER NARROWS, NC: ALL PUTINS CLOSED!!”, in rec.boats.paddle (Usenet), retrieved 04 Oct 2018, message-ID <6p7j7t$r21$1@nnrp1.dejanews.com>
    • 1977 CHiPs 3 3/4" action figures (5 different: Ponch, Jon, Sarge,Jimmy Squeaks, Stupid Fucking Asshat Erik Mouse, and Wheels Willie) $10-15 each1999 July 23, madge, “California Hustle,”, in alt.fan.erik (Usenet), retrieved 04 Oct 2018, message-ID <m-2307991051020001@ppp204184.asahi-net.or.jp>

Examples of asshat in a sentence

  • Eventually an asshat in a JUST DO IT T-shirt asks me, “How's your training going?”2006, Jen Lancaster, Bitter is the New Black […] , Penguin, →ISBN, page 224:
  • Anyone who would make a claim like this on national TV is a real asshat.2007, John Hargrave, Prank the Monkey: The Zug Book of Pranks, Citadel Press, →ISBN, page 188:

Forms of asshat

pluralasshats
alternative Commonwealth Ireland UKarsehat

Origin of asshat

From ass + hat, from the slang expression have one's head up one's ass, thus, wearing the ass as a hat. The term is extended to people who are clueless or bumbling, who don't understand what is going on.

Words formed from asshat

Questions about asshat

What does asshat mean?
Asshat means an obnoxiously ignorant person; a fool.
How do you use asshat in a sentence?
Eventually an asshat in a JUST DO IT T-shirt asks me, “How's your training going?”
What part of speech is asshat?
Asshat is a noun.
How do you pronounce asshat?
Asshat is pronounced /ˈæshæt/ (US).
What is the plural of asshat?
The plural of asshat is asshats.

Words near asshat in the dictionary

  1. assgrabber
  2. assgrabbers
  3. assgrabs
  4. asshair
  5. asshairs
  6. asshat
  7. asshatitude
  8. asshatness
  9. asshats
  10. asshattedness
  11. asshattery

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: asshat (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-asshat.wav.

Cite this entry: “asshat.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/asshat. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.